Portland, OR...

[workswithseed 2012]

6 minutes ago, Helobious said:

The MAX has been free all weekend so I’ve been on it a bunch. I’m ready for a fight every time I step on but haven’t encountered any problems at all. Much of downtown is eerily quiet/inactive tonight. Better than the alternative I guess. Probably watched too much news, everyone made Portland sound like a total war zone but I haven’t felt that way at all. Seattle is still a way nicer/prettier city for sure. 

You're not wrong, all the looters and rioters have really taken their toll on what wasn't so bad. If you can, get up to Hawthorne. It has some cool stuff, same as North Mississippi.

Edited July 6, 2021 by workswithseed

[Kyrie Eleison 9249]

not a bad place at all…great Thai, sushi, Salt and Straw pear and bleu cheese ice cream hit the spot for sure.  
 

oddities…there’s a vegan titter not far from where we’re at, so yeah.  i have no clue what a vegan titter is, but i guess it involves hairy pits, legs and bush.  and patchouli.  but whatever floats a boat.  
 

good visit…we’ll be back.  

[pops 6946]

Meh. You all are more forgiving than me. Just spent two days there and it's a fucking war zone. I'll go back if I have to for work but other than that I'm out. 

[workswithseed 2012]

4 minutes ago, Kyrie Eleison said:

not a bad place at all…great Thai, sushi, Salt and Straw pear and bleu cheese ice cream hit the spot for sure.  
 

oddities…there’s a vegan titter not far from where we’re at, so yeah.  i have no clue what a vegan titter is, but i guess it involves hairy pits, legs and bush.  and patchouli.  but whatever floats a boat.  
 

good visit…we’ll be back.  

If I remember correctly, Necropolis is open again.

[Incredulity 11141]

6 hours ago, workswithseed said:

If I remember correctly, Necropolis is open again.

Acropolis….Acropolis.

[The Other White Meat 39]

13 hours ago, Kyrie Eleison said:

not a bad place at all…great Thai, sushi, Salt and Straw pear and bleu cheese ice cream hit the spot for sure.  
 

oddities…there’s a vegan titter not far from where we’re at, so yeah.  i have no clue what a vegan titter is, but i guess it involves hairy pits, legs and bush.  and patchouli.  but whatever floats a boat.  
 

good visit…we’ll be back.  

Casa Diablo! Food menu is all vegan and no fur, leather, etc worn by the dancers on stage. Other than that, your normal garden variety full nudity titter.

[pronghorn 44]

Bump. Heading that way to live for a month or two. Any spots?

[Texzilla58 4683]

I lived there for three years back when it was just halfway fucked, not totally fucked.

Find a good seafood joint. I find Jake’s a bit touristy. Oysters are great as are crabs. Should be some river with salmon running. Halibut is great. Avoid shrimp up there as it’s all Asian Tiger shitbugs.

It’s a great breakfast town. Great Thai joints. Tittybar steakhouses are popular.

There is no barbecue. Lousy Mexican.

[6th Street 6246]

Division St in SE Portland and Alberta St in NE Portland
 

Pine State Biscuit

Bollywood Theater

Double Dragon

Tin Shed

Radio Room

 

 

 

[HenryJames 64914]

Rose VL Deli for Vietnamese soups and Master Kong for Jianbing.

[Texzilla58 4683]

Murata is as close to a little Tokyo neighborhood sushi joint as I’ve been to on this side. It is fantastic. We used to take Japanese expats there and they were blown away. You will see fish you’ve never seen.

The town is ground zero of craft brewing and it’s 10x what it was when I lived there. Most of them have excellent food so check the latest rankings with the locals. Most can be depended on to serve killer fish and chips, great burgers, and fish tacos.

Ringside is a local favorite. It sucks. It was last great in the 80’s. You want a steak go to Ox. It’s not really a steak town.

Screen door is good breakfast place.

The town is loaded with excellent Thai, Korean, Vietnamese, Chinese, and Japanese.

[closetohumping 17258]

1 hour ago, Texzilla58 said:

Murata is as close to a little Tokyo neighborhood sushi joint as I’ve been to on this side. It is fantastic. We used to take Japanese expats there and they were blown away. You will see fish you’ve never seen.

The town is ground zero of craft brewing and it’s 10x what it was when I lived there. Most of them have excellent food so check the latest rankings with the locals. Most can be depended on to serve killer fish and chips, great burgers, and fish tacos.

Ringside is a local favorite. It sucks. It was last great in the 80’s. You want a steak go to Ox. It’s not really a steak town.

Screen door is good breakfast place.

The town is loaded with excellent Thai, Korean, Vietnamese, Chinese, and Japanese.

Great town.  I hope it bounces back.

[Texzilla58 4683]

Great town.  I hope it bounces back.

It is hell on earth. 44 and rain ten months a year. The weather is why the locals are all crazy. 80% of women have seasonal affective disorder, and only about a quarter get treated. The crazy scale is off the chart, hot not so much.

[6th Street 6246]

3 hours ago, Texzilla58 said:

It is hell on earth. 44 and rain ten months a year. The weather is why the locals are all crazy. 80% of women have seasonal affective disorder, and only about a quarter get treated. The crazy scale is off the chart, hot not so much.

Oh stop, plenty of hoors in the Pearl

[pronghorn 44]

Food has been outstanding. It is hard to not to eat out three times a day given how cheap and amazing every meal has been.

Dog parks also have been amazing.

I am now threatening to move here and looked at houses as a joke this weekend. One of the houses had a longhorn flag.

[MAUFRAIS 6539]

I really liked Mississippi Records and the Bagdad Theatre. Also remember a taxidermy shop on Mississippi that was cool.

[closetohumping 17258]

6 hours ago, pronghorn said:

Food has been outstanding. It is hard to not to eat out three times a day given how cheap and amazing every meal has been.

Dog parks also have been amazing.

I am now threatening to move here and looked at houses as a joke this weekend. One of the houses had a longhorn flag.

Probably less expensive than Austin now.  I’d do it 

[Texzilla58 4683]

Food has been outstanding. It is hard to not to eat out three times a day given how cheap and amazing every meal has been.
Dog parks also have been amazing.
I am now threatening to move here and looked at houses as a joke this weekend. One of the houses had a longhorn flag.

You are there in the dry season. Rainy season starts Labor Day. Goes thru July 4. Ten months of low clouds, 44 and cold rain. Enjoy it. Suicide is legal.

[gaspar 102]

We moved up to Vancouver, WA (suburb of Portland on the WA side) from Houston in Oct 2020 and have enjoyed it so far. Yes, it rains on and off from Oct to April, but summers are fantastic. No luck with good Tex-Mex, but did find these bbq places (https://podnahspit.com/ and https://thesmokinoakpit.com) along with the PDX Exes chapter and McCombs Alumni network, so still getting settled in. Also, we’ve got 3 butcher shops within 15 / 20 minutes. 

Edited August 14, 2022 by gaspar

[closetohumping 17258]

57 minutes ago, gaspar said:

We moved up to Vancouver, WA (suburb of Portland on the WA side) from Houston in Oct 2020 and have enjoyed it so far. Yes, it rains on and off from Oct to April, but summers are fantastic. No luck with good Tex-Mex, but did find these bbq places (https://podnahspit.com/ and https://thesmokinoakpit.com) along with the PDX Exes chapter and McCombs Alumni network, so still getting settled in. Also, we’ve got 3 butcher shops within 15 / 20 minutes. 

Smart.  No state income tax.  No sales tax across the river.

[workswithseed 2012]

On 8/14/2022 at 2:13 PM, closetohumping said:

Smart.  No state income tax.  No sales tax across the river.

That's if you also work in Washington, if you work in Portland you'll still get income tax. You used to be able to live in Oregon and go to Washington and not pay sales tax.

[markstanco 12424]

That's if you also work in Washington, if you work in Portland you'll still get income tax. You used to be able to live in Oregon and go to Washington and not pay sales tax.

So the no sales tax across the river is no more? When did they do that? I bet the local businesses were disappointed.

[markstanco 12424]

Oh and I have mentioned it before and maybe on this thread.

https://www.meriwethersnw.com/

It is my favorite lunch spot in the USA and I’ve been to 47 states.

They have their own farm and the salads are outstanding. None better. The fish is fantastic as well, but I’ll be honest I go for the local greens.

[workswithseed 2012]

12 hours ago, markstanco said:

So the no sales tax across the river is no more? When did they do that? I bet the local businesses were disappointed.

https://www.opb.org/news/article/oregon-washington-sales-tax-new-law/

2019

[MalibuSheriff 1084]

I haven’t been mugged yet or converted to a steampunk enthusiast but did have a fantastic brunch at Screen Door Eastside:

Chicken and Biscuit:

A colleague ordered the praline bacon…dayummm:

Still extremely sketchy in parts of downtown.  Hotel clerk said there was a shooting just down the street last night and their valet just quit as it wasn’t safe.  I changed hotels.

74F though.

[texasdago 7376]

Will be staying on the north edge of Buckman on the east side of the Willamette... any tips over there?  I have a couple of the food cart pods tagged on Google Maps.  

Anyone been to Luce?  https://www.luceportland.com/

Also, what's the general dress vibe in PDX?  I haven't been in 20 years when I used to go a lot for work.  Coming from Austin, I'm pretty easy going clothing-wise... are places like Noble Rot and Nostrana out if more casual?

[NoRagrets 1120]

I’m going soon with kids. No idea where I should stay or what I should do other than see a pickles game. #help

[Reese Bennett 3596]

No mention of Powell’s yet? Bunch of illiterates on here.

[MalibuSheriff 1084]

3 hours ago, texasdago said:

Also, what's the general dress vibe in PDX?  I haven't been in 20 years when I used to go a lot for work.  Coming from Austin, I'm pretty easy going clothing-wise... are places like Noble Rot and Nostrana out if more casual?

Two nights here and more casual than Austin.

Did Jake’s Seafood tonight and it was fantastic.  It’s been 20+ years since I’ve eaten there and it’s still great with same old school vibe.  Apps, salads, and entrees were great.  Dungeness crab stuffed salmon was tip top.   

NW Portland is very cool and vibrant (reminded me of Portland I loved twenty years ago).  Great restaurants and bars everywhere.  

Avoid Old Town.

[royiv 9043]

7 hours ago, Reese Bennett said:

No mention of Powell’s yet? Bunch of illiterates on here.

I find Powell's overwhelming. My wife is from the Portland area and loves going there when we're visiting. It makes me feel like I need a Valium just walking in that place.

[texasdago 7376]

Trying to figure out what to do with two teenagers for the first half-day... basically like from 3:00 on other than go eat at food carts.  Again, in the Buckman area, more or less.  Second day probably zoo, japanese garden, maybe falls on day two instead of day three.

[Butch Had Not 2924]

It won't be dark until like 10 there so a drive to hood River might be a good little afternoon thing. Plenty of breweries and nice walking around. 

[MalibuSheriff 1084]

Lots of sketchy shit all over Portland.  Be very aware of your surroundings at all times, especially with kids.  Homeless/open drug use problem here makes Austin look like Mayberry.

Violent crime way up per local clients we ate dinner with last night.

Great food options all over town but the smell of piss is all over town.  Kind of ruins the food scene.

Really, really sad what has happened to what used to be my favorite city to visit 15-20 years ago - a once great city.

 

 

[Texzilla58 4683]

I started going to Portland in the late 80’s and it was so cool back then. It was a big town with great taverns and fine seafood and much different before the influx of tech, austinism, and California hipsters.

Then moved there in 99 for three years. The homeless problem was starting in parts of downtown but the drug trade was mostly down in old town amongst all the anarchists and Wobblies. The foodie /restaurant boom was starting and there was so much cool shit happening. The craft brewery and coffee boom was exploding which was something that was still just starting in the Bay Area from where we were moving. Breweries were coming up with special brews that would only be at a certain tavern as long as five kegs lasted. The Oregon wine country was heating up. It was very special. We loved everything but the weather, and loved exploring the pacific NW from the San Juan’s to Idaho to Bend , St Helen’s and the coast.

Fast forward 20 years and all my friends are moving out, mostly to Idaho, Alaska, and Texas. The city and state are a mess.

[Macanudo 12649]

On 6/27/2023 at 12:48 PM, Butch Had Not said:

It won't be dark until like 10 there so a drive to hood River might be a good little afternoon thing. Plenty of breweries and nice walking around. 

If you're going out to Multnomah Falls, it would be best to go early and on a week day.  Weekends are a mess.   There is limited parking.  But....   Like Butch said, go on out to Hood River.   The drive along the Columbia is pretty impressive.   

[texasdago 7376]

Enjoying Buckman.  Great walkable area. Tons of food, bar, coffee options.  Love the quirkiness of the neighborhoods and the community feel as you walk around.  Hit up Cascade Brewing and Hawthorne Asylum.  Been walking all over this morning and really like the vibe of the area so far.

[BearSchlong 7971]

If you're going out to Multnomah Falls, it would be best to go early and on a week day.  Weekends are a mess.   There is limited parking.  But....   Like Butch said, go on out to Hood River.   The drive along the Columbia is pretty impressive.   

Got there yesterday at 6:30am, had to clear my head before my nephew’s funeral. Had a brisk walk up which is impossible later in the day when it gets crowded.

Between the funeral and the banquet, I drove my daughter around downtown and she people gawked.

Also, edibles in Portland are about 20% of what they cost in Chicago. I don’t partake but I’m happy to take some home for my wife and her friends.

[gernblansten 3113]

On 6/26/2023 at 11:16 PM, NoRagrets said:

I’m going soon with kids. No idea where I should stay or what I should do other than see a pickles game. #help

I anticipate you'll have SomeRagrets.

[texasdago 7376]

Back from our trip.  Enjoyed PDX, as mentioned.  Thought time at Washington Park was absolutely worthwhile.  Easily one of the most beautiful urban parks I've seen in many years.  

We drove to the gorge to make our way to Mt Hood.  We knew Multnomah would be a mess so we made two other stops instead.  Our favorite was Horsetail Falls since you could go down low and get blasted by spray on a big boulder.  You would get soaked.  We then hiked up to Ponytail Falls which was excellent.  Had lunch at the Gorges Beer Company in Cascade Locks.  Recommended.  Then made our way through Hood River to do a loop around and over to Timberline.  

Pro Tip:  If you go to Crater Lake on a trip in Oregon, go swimming.  Yes, its cold (50 degrees on the surface when we went) but its a once-in-a-lifetime thing.  Do it.

Edit: photo of Horsetail Falls

Edited July 12, 2023 by texasdago

[NoRagrets 1120]

On 7/12/2023 at 9:30 AM, texasdago said:

Back from our trip.  Enjoyed PDX, as mentioned.  Thought time at Washington Park was absolutely worthwhile.  Easily one of the most beautiful urban parks I've seen in many years.  

We drove to the gorge to make our way to Mt Hood.  We knew Multnomah would be a mess so we made two other stops instead.  Our favorite was Horsetail Falls since you could go down low and get blasted by spray on a big boulder.  You would get soaked.  We then hiked up to Ponytail Falls which was excellent.  Had lunch at the Gorges Beer Company in Cascade Locks.  Recommended.  Then made our way through Hood River to do a loop around and over to Timberline.  

Pro Tip:  If you go to Crater Lake on a trip in Oregon, go swimming.  Yes, its cold (50 degrees on the surface when we went) but its a once-in-a-lifetime thing.  Do it.

Edit: photo of Horsetail Falls

House I’m staying at is basically in Washing Park. Beautiful area. So far I’ve avoided downtown, but we’re going to a Timbers game tonight. Our friend is a local, so they know their way around.

It was all sun today on mt hood and 75. Dreading the trip back to Texas, but I’ve been here in November and the SAD is no joke.

Joe’s donuts in Sandy did not disappoint on the way up to the mountain. And the kids I did the slide down the mountain a few too many times, but they loved it. 

[Incredulity 11141]

On 7/26/2023 at 6:24 PM, NoRagrets said:

I did the slide down the mountain a few too many times

Username not checking out

[NoRagrets 1120]

Highly recommend a Timbers game as well. Downtown stadium with cheap tickets and great local beers.